City Council district candidates talk Energy Tower, water

By Joseph Basco | jbasco@mrt.com

Published 8:08 pm, Monday, October 14, 2013

The four candidates running for City Council district positions were tasked to tell their stances on issues such as Energy Tower at City Center and water Monday evening at a League of Women Voters forum.

Although there is no longer a pending vote from City Council, the Energy Tower became the first topic of discussion during the forum. The moderator, reading a question from the audience, asked the candidates what they thought of the incentive deal made for the private development.

District 3 candidate Spencer Robnett, the first to respond, said he is for the tower, but was not so sure that tax dollars should go toward the project. He also said he wondered about the tower’s sustainability post-boom and its traffic impact.

District 4 candidate J. Ross Lacy echoed those statements by saying he’s for private enterprise and would have voted against the incentive package.

“I do not feel that it is a good use of taxpayers’ money,” Lacy said.

Lacy’s opponent, incumbent Michael Trost, was one of the four council members who voted for the Energy Tower term sheet, which included the $60 million incentive deal. He emphasized that no existing tax revenue will be used to pay developers. Instead, they must request a rebate from the tax revenue that the tower will generate.

District 3 candidate Sharla Hotchkiss, the last to speak on the topic, said she does not want the tower, but understands the economic advantage that it may provide. She said that Energy Tower is an ongoing dilemma, as evidenced by it being raised during the forum.

Water was another topic that offered diverging answers from the candidates. Lacy proposed that desalination is the solution, as long as the plant is done by a private company. Robnett agreed with desalination as the key, saying that the first few steps toward desalination plants need to happen now.

Trost, countering his opponent’s proposal, said that desalination would make people pay more for their water. He said regional collaboration with other cities can help solve the water crisis.

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Hotchkiss went against the grain and instead proposed that residents themselves practice more water conservation techniques. She said that bath water, which most people let go down the drain, can be reused.

“There are things that you can do, and it doesn’t cost any more money,” Hotchkiss said.